Lethifold
by jamc91
Summary: Harry goes missing. Hermione panics. Ron, oddly enough, stays calm. RHr.


(A/N: Inspiration: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, by Newt Scamander, the footnote on page 27.  
  
This is Harry's sixth year.)  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'I'm FINE!'  
  
Supremely annoyed, the dark-haired boy stormed out of the Gryffindor common room.  
  
Worried, his friend followed him.  
  
Harry Potter stomped to the lake and sat on one of the rocks by the edge and sighed. Stupid annoying mates of his. Would they never take a hint and QUIT BOTHERING HIM? He needed some private time. Even locking himself in the bathroom didn't help. It was at times like that that he cursed magic. Stupid Unlocking Charms.  
  
'Harry?'  
  
ARGH! Ron had followed him out again! Honestly, he was so freaking DENSE sometimes. Did Harry have to tell him to f*** off, or was Ron going to do that himself? Probably not.  
  
'Harry, are you okay?'  
  
'I'm FINE,' Harry said through clenched teeth.  
  
'Are you sure?' Ron said, concern showing in his voice.  
  
Harry's anger subsided very slightly. He supposed he couldn't blame his friends for being worried about him. Maybe they thought he'd go and jump in the lake or something.  
  
Did they honestly think he was THAT depressed since Sirius died? Well definitely depressed, but not depressed enough to fling himself off the top of the school water tower. If the school had a water tower, that is.  
  
'Do you . . . want to talk?' said Ron awkwardly.  
  
Harry shook his head and stared at the giant pinkish-purplish tentacle rising slowly out of the middle of the lake, presumeably to push an unsuspecting first-year into the lake, just for fun. How the first-year was unsuspecting was beyond him. Personally, he'd never been shoved into the lake, but Ron had, a few times. Twice in his first year and once in his second year. In his third year he nearly got pushed in again, but he was subconsciously watching the lake for any suspicious tentacles and managed to struggle against the tentacle and run.  
  
Anyway.  
  
'Well . . . if you're okay –'  
  
'I. Am. FINE,' Harry said irritably.  
  
Ron glanced at Harry worriedly again and headed back to the castle, looking over his shoulder a few times.  
  
Or at least that's what Ron wanted Harry to think. Harry knew Ron had gone to hide behind a bush or something, and would shortly be joined by Hermione. Well, maybe they'd start snogging, then I can have some time to myself, he thought.  
  
A COUPLE OF MINUTES LATER  
  
Harry, getting bored of watching the lake, got up.  
  
He walked to the bush where Ron was presumeably hiding quietly, and sure enough, there they were. Ron and Hermione didn't notice him.  
  
In fact, Harry thought they'd probably go right on snogging if someone screamed because the giant squid had caught them and was now trying to eat them with a couple dollops of ketchup, mustard, chilli sauce, and maybe a few sprinkles of salt and pepper here and there.  
  
Harry wondered if the squid liked Dijon mustard.  
  
Maybe he should go and throw a packet of ketchup at it.  
  
Maybe not.  
  
He'd probably get a detention from Professor Snape for 'polluting the environment'. Ha. Like Snape actually cared about the environment. I mean, with all that potion making of his, he probably couldn't care less. For example, the Draught of Peace – it produced a silver vapour, which was probably harmful to the environment!  
  
So where should he go now?  
  
He thought for a minute.  
  
Ron and Hermione could only stand a couple of minutes of snogging at a time. Then they'd go look for Harry, if he wasn't where they thought he had been. And the first place they'd look would be the dormitory.  
  
Hmm.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ron and Hermione broke apart, breathless and slightly flushed.  
  
'Let's find Harry,' said Ron.  
  
'Yes, let's,' agreed Hermione.  
  
They went up to the dormitory. They found Harry sleeping.  
  
'But it's only five-twenty,' frowned Ron.  
  
'Shh!' Hermione hissed. 'Don't wake him!'  
  
She pushed Ron out the door and closed it quietly.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry lay on his side, unable to sleep.  
  
Yes, that's it. It was a quite a brilliant plan, to say so himself.  
  
All he had to do was . . .  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The next day, Ron woke up early for once. He checked his calendar. Sunday. No classes today.  
  
'Maybe I'll get Harry to play a game of Quidditch,' he thought, getting up and reaching for Harry's curtains on his four-poster bed. 'Harry?'  
  
He opened the curtains . . .  
  
And found the bed empty. 'Where is he?!' cried Ron, panicked. 'His broomstick's gone, too!'  
  
His cry woke up the other boys. 'Waz gung on?' mumbled Seamus sleepily.  
  
'Nothing, nothing,' said Ron. 'Go back to sleep.'  
  
The boys flopped back down onto their beds and were instantly off in Lalaland. Or Sleepaland. Whatever.  
  
Ron quickly changed and went down to the common room, impatiently waiting for Hermione, because he couldn't get up the stairs.  
  
Hermione finally came down half an hour later, evidently going to find Harry and Ron. 'Ron!'  
  
'Hermione, Harry's not there!'  
  
'Where?'  
  
'I checked his bed, and he wasn't there!' said Ron, now even more panicked. 'His broom isn't there either!'  
  
'Stop. Ron, stop panicking! Let's check the Great Hall, he might have gone down early for breakfast.' said Hermione.  
  
They hurried down to the Great Hall. A few students were there, but after a quick scan, there was no sign of Harry.  
  
'How about the kitchens?' suggested Hermione. Ron nodded.  
  
They went down even further to the kitchens. After a quick consultation with the house-elves, which Ron had done, as Hermione 'would probably offend them and we'd be thrown out of the kitchens', to use Ron's words, the search had turned up nothing. No sign of Harry at all.  
  
'Where could he BE?' said Ron in frustration, after they had exited the kitchens.  
  
'Let's check the dormitory again, then,' suggested Hermione. 'He might have gone back there.'  
  
So they, now out of breath from running around so much, walked back up to the dormitory.  
  
Another browse around turned up nothing.  
  
'Where IS he?!' cried Ron. 'C'mon, Hermione, let's go to the lake and look for him there,' he said, reaching for the door handle.  
  
'Wait.'  
  
'What?'  
  
'What's this?' said Hermione, holding up a note, slightly crumpled, as if the writer had been torn away from their writing.  
  
'I dunno,' said Ron, heading over to her. 'Let me see,' he said.  
  
Hermione handed the note to him.  
  
'This looks like Harry's handwriting,' frowned Ron. 'What's this say, le- thee-fuld . . .'  
  
'HONESTLY, Ron,' said Hermione, rolling her eyes. 'Give that here, let me read it.'  
  
The note contained nothing but a single word, which consisted of nine letters.  
  
'Lethifold,' read Hermione.  
  
'Lethawhat?' said Ron, puzzled.  
  
'Lethifold, Ron!' said Hermione, now looking horrified. 'Ron, a Lethifold got him!'  
  
'What's a Lethifold?' said Ron, confused.  
  
'Ron! Don't you EVER read your textbooks?'  
  
'No.'  
  
'It says in 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'! According to the book, a Lethifold . . .'  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
(A/N: [Text in between these thingies is my notes.]  
  
'Lethifold (also known as Living Shroud): Ministry of Magic classification: XXXXX [Known wizard killer / impossible to domesticate]  
  
The Lethifold is a mercifully rare creature found solely in tropical climates. It resembles a black cloak perhaps half an inch thick (thicker if it has recently killed and digested a victim) which glides along the ground at night.'  
  
[Here there was a passage, you probably don't want to read it]  
  
'. . . the Patronus is the only spell known to repel the Lethifold. Since it generally attacks the sleeping, though, its victims rarely have a chance to use any magic against it. Once its prey has been successfully suffocated, the Lethifold digests its food there and then in their bed. It then exits the house slightly thicker and fatter than before, leaving no trace of itself or its victim behind.'  
  
[Insert footnote in which this short one-shot fic has been based upon, which I'll tell you later]  
  
The above passage was actually from 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them', by Newt Scamander (aka JKR).)  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
After Hermione's long-winded explanation of what a Lethifold was, Ron would have nearly fallen asleep again, if Harry hadn't been missing.  
  
'Well, there might have been this one time when Janus Thickey pretended to have been eaten by a Lethifold, but –'  
  
'You mean you think a Lethifold ATE Harry?!' cried Ron in disbelief.  
  
'Well, it's certainly possible!'  
  
'But he might be pretending, you know, like you said once a wizard pretended to have been ea –'  
  
'But why would he do that?' said Hermione. 'Give me one reason why he would do that and I'll consider the possibility that Harry might still be alive.'  
  
'Er . . .'  
  
'There, you see? There is no logical reason why Harry would pretend to be eaten by a Lethifold!'  
  
'But, well, -'  
  
'What, Ron, what?!' cried Hermione. 'Look, just drop it! We've got to see Professor Dumbledore right away!'  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'I wonder where I am,' Harry thought, walking along.  
  
He saw a bright light.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'But what about his broom?'  
  
'I don't know, someone stole it or something!' said Hermione, throwing up her hands in frustration. 'Ron, we have to see Professor Dumbledore right NOW!'  
  
Ron still looked quite unconvinced.  
  
'What can I say to convince you that he's GONE?' Hermione cried.  
  
Ron shrugged.  
  
'All right, I can't convince you, but at least –'  
  
Ron, deciding that Hermione was getting too frantic, silenced her with a kiss.  
  
Hermione fell silent. After a few moments her hands reached up of their own accord and wrapped them around his neck.  
  
Instinctively Ron's arms went around her waist.  
  
They stood there just kissing, unaware of anything else. Hermione even forgot about Harry for a moment.  
  
Luckily it was so early in the morning. To use Professor McGonagall's words, it would be 'uncouth' for two prefects to be seen snogging in the common room. The Gryffindor common room, no less. It would be DISASTROUS to the House's reputation for two PREFECTS to be seen snogging in the COMMON ROOM!  
  
Hermione broke the kiss. She looked at Ron, slightly breathless and flushed.  
  
They stared at each other for a few moments.  
  
Then Ron looked away.  
  
'Let's go,' he said, grabbing Hermione's arm.  
  
'Where?' said Hermione, stumbling after him.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ron led Hermione into the Room of Requirement.  
  
He closed the door and locked it. 'Colloportus.'  
  
He turned to Hermione and grinned.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
After another snogging session, Ron broke the kiss.  
  
Hermione tried to reach for him again, but Ron stopped her. Hermione froze and stared at Ron.  
  
'What?' she said.  
  
Ron gulped.  
  
'There – there's a Hogsmeade weekend c-coming up, and . . .'  
  
Hermione stared at him.  
  
'I – I was wondering if . . .'  
  
Hermione waited.  
  
'If . . . you'dliketogowime?' he said, in a rush.  
  
She smiled.  
  
'Yes,' she said.  
  
Ron's heart filled with joy.  
  
Did he hear her correctly?  
  
He hugged her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'Hi,' said Harry cautiously.  
  
It looked at him, frightened. It was on its own, poor thing. Where was its mother?  
  
What gender was it, anyway?  
  
He remembered how to check an animal's gender.  
  
Maybe he didn't want to know.  
  
He saw the light again.  
  
He looked at it.  
  
Now he understood where the light came from.  
  
Harry looked at his watch.  
  
'Well, I think I need to go back now,' he said. He mounted the thing he'd brought with him.  
  
It moved its head again.  
  
This time the light was brighter than before. It was already getting near noon.  
  
'See you,' he said. He raised a hand in farewell.  
  
It whinnied.  
  
'Can I come to visit occasionally?' he asked.  
  
The unicorn foal nodded softly. Its shininess caught the light.  
  
'See you, then,' he said, as the light engulfed him . . .  
  
He took off, and flew.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'Let's go look for Harry again,' said Ron, after they'd exited the Room of Requirement. Now that she'd calmed down, maybe she'd be more . . . calm . . . and rational.  
  
'Yes . . .'  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry dismounted.  
  
Walking towards the castle, he took it with him.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'Oh, right!'  
  
'Oh, right?'  
  
'Harry!'  
  
'You JUST remembered him?' said Ron incredulously.  
  
Hermione blushed.  
  
'We have to tell Professor Dumbledore that he's missing,' said Hermione, pulling on Ron's arm. 'Come on!'  
  
Ron sighed.  
  
'You still need to relax a bit more,' he said, dragging her back to the Room of Requirement.  
  
'RON! We need to tell Professor Dumbledore!'  
  
Ron bound her with a Leg-Locker and paced in front of the room again.  
  
'RON!'  
  
The door appeared. He grabbed Hermione again, and took off the spell. He pushed her gently into the room again and shut the door and locked it.  
  
'Ron, we need to tell –'  
  
'Hermione, just relax,' he said.  
  
'But –'  
  
'But nothing,' he said firmly. 'You know, I'm usually the one to lose my head. How come I'm so calm and you're not?'  
  
Hermione blushed again.  
  
'Well, I still thi –'  
  
Ron silenced her in another soft kiss.  
  
Hermione's hands reached up to play with his hair.  
  
Ron's tongue pressed gently against Hermione's lips. She opened them slightly. Her own tongue slipped out and played with his.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'I wonder how Ron and Hermione reacted when they read that note?' Harry wondered, traipsing over the soft grass of the Quidditch pitch.  
  
Wait, what was he doing?  
  
He was on the Quidditch pitch.  
  
He mounted his broom and took off again.  
  
Ron and Hermione could wait.  
  
They were probably snogging again, anyway.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
HALF AN HOUR LATER  
  
Harry landed and dismounted again.  
  
He set off towards the castle, broom over his shoulder.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'So you see, Professor, Harry must have been eaten by a Lethifold,' concluded Hermione.  
  
Dumbledore's eyes, for some reason, twinkled.  
  
'There was no trace of him in his bed?' he asked.  
  
'Yes,' said Hermione.  
  
'He was gone early in the morning?'  
  
'Yes,' said Ron.  
  
The door opened.  
  
'Hi, Ron, Hermione,' said Harry.  
  
'HARRY!'  
  
With a cry of disbelief and joy, Hermione threw herself onto Harry and hugged him tightly.  
  
'Harry, we thought you were dea–'  
  
'Actually,' interrupted Ron. 'She thought you were dead. I didn't. Not really.'  
  
'Well, now that you see that Mr Potter is not, in fact, dead, you may go back to your dormitories,' said Dumbledore, a hint of amusement in his expression.  
  
'Thank you, Professor,' said Hermione.  
  
They exited from Dumbledore's office.  
  
'Harry, where were you?' said Hermione. 'We looked all over for you!'  
  
'To be honest, you two were annoying me,' said Harry bluntly.  
  
'How?' Hermione frowned.  
  
'You kept fussing over me,' said Harry.  
  
'We were worried!'  
  
'You were annoying me,' Harry repeated.  
  
END  
  
(A/N: That was weird.  
  
It took me actually quite a long time to write this, because I kept neglecting it. I wrote a bit of it at first, then I got writer's block and then I forgot about it. But now it's done, yippee.  
  
I can't believe this was eight and a half pages long!) 


End file.
